With out the question there the answer never comes.

When people care, amazing things can begin to happenBy: Steve Trubilla

Success in all things begins with someone caring about those things. The value of self-reliance becomes revealed as people wait for others to act. Things simply do not get done. There comes a time in every person's life when they realize if they want something done they must do it.

Too often, self-interest is the driving force for those seeking political office. What's in it for me?Every now and then someone comes on the stage that is not looking to see what he or she can get.They are not looking to turn a buck, or enrich their family or friends with a sweetheart deal.They quietly go about working to improve the quality of life for their neighbors. Seeing what needs to be done, they do it.

Franklin County, do you know who John Parrish is? He is a man that started a movement, and it is a movement to bring economic development to Northeastern Franklin County.Growing up in Centerville and currently living in White Level, John for many years worked in state government and pursued business with Advantage Marketing.​There are many others now involved, but John Parish was the first to stand up. He and Dr. Jimmy Foster are the founders of the Franklin County North Carolina Revitalization Committee. Dr. Foster pursued and excelled at a career in education.

These forward thinking men have established strategic planning and tasked organizations with goals to produce results. What will be done, who will do it, and when will it be done is the focus.

The Committee meets every month at the Red Bud Baptist Church in Castalia, NC. The address is 832 NC Highway 58. The next meeting will be held at 6:15 p.m. on June 25. This will be much more than a meeting, it will be an event, a Business Showcase with as many as (25) local businesses presenting with displays. For more information on this, contact Melissa Hodges at (919) 497-6299.

The public is invited, and to quote Parrish, "Bring someone with you to the next meeting."This is a committee in action. One of the many goals is to bring people to Northeastern Franklin County to share in and enjoy the plentiful agriculture and natural resources. Another is to bring broadband Internet to their/your community.

Children should not have to go to the McDonald's parking lot to gain access to the internet to do their homework.

It is outrageous that our elected officials, to include our local school board, allow this. I have talked with many of them. What I hear is, it is a matter of resources, we are working on it, it is not something I can do anything about, etc. Excuses! Plain and simple if your elected officials cannot resolve this who can? Better question yet, if they cannot solve the problems just what do they do?

I will credit those that are working on this for their efforts. Effort has its merit, but results are what counts.

I have even been told rural broadband is a problem a lot of places have. This was offered in an attempt to justify the problem. To me it was just another excuse, and a weak one at that. If your children or your business is at a disadvantage do you really care that other places cannot access the internet?

The information highway is not coming, it is here. Without it you are left behind.

In terms of limited resources, of course they are limited. What I want to hear is how we are going to obtain those resources. Not that it is too hard for you to do. If your job is really too hard, go get one you can do. Lead, follow, or get out of the way.

I was recently told around $12 million for rural North Carolina Broadband may be identified in the budget. It was a great answer to the question of resources, leaving me feeling help is on the way. Upon looking into it further, I found even if it is, it will be disbursed based on county economic tier. The chances of Franklin County ever seeing any of it are slim to none.

The amount of work that has been done on this by private citizens like John Parrish, Dr. Jimmy Foster, and others is noteworthy and an example of what can be done when people truly care.

Attending a recent Franklin County North Carolina Revitalization Committee meeting I asked Steve and Elke Mccalla from Bunn what they thought of how the meeting and effort was going. Steve said, "Seems to be extremely progressive, no non-sense brain secession for economic development." Elke said, "Very structured and organized, inspired."

Inspired is the word I would also use to describe what is going on in Northeastern Franklin County as well.

I have never left a county commissioners' meeting feeling inspired. Maybe next time.​When you see John Parish tell him thank you. Thank you so very much for caring. Well done sir!

Internet access is something no modern youth can live without. I don’t mean literally, but one can argue that having access to the internet can definitely put you ahead in the times we live in today. Gone are the days when children had an encyclopedia collection in their houses, in which they peruse to search for answers to do their homework. Now, to able to keep up with the demands of modern society, one must have access to the internet. For school, for work, for keeping touch with friends -- these are just some examples of internet use that are expected of the modern man.

Champions in the community! Thank you for spotlighting those who are aligning and acting to create positive change.

Special thanks to Dr. Jim Foster, who immediately reached out to NCDA&CS, after learning about a new agriculture economic development initiative, the Visit NC Farms phone app. As a result, it is both a privilege and a pleasure to team with the Kerr-Tar Council of Governments, to include Franklin County, on the Visit NC Farms app. The app encourages millions of residents and tourists to support agriculture destinations.

Given the state's challenges with access to broadband, the app technology was developed to work when connected to Wifi, and most importantly, when a connection is unavailable.

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Melissa Truesdale

6/24/2018 05:50:01 pm

I understand clearly how disconnected and at a loss a person is without internet. It is something I budget as an extra! much like someone else would budget a luxurious vacation. Geting internet is not a vacation it is access to job openings, community events, to police and weather alerts. internet is a way to stay informed stay in touch and basically feel connected to your community locally and globally. Get I am one that goes to McDonald's and cannot afford to go in and buy on a daily basis I sit in the parking lot and catch up as long as the Wi-Fi reaches the parking spot that day. The world is creating the Haves and the Have Nots. Never in my life would I have thought for the generation born in 1960 would condone or confirm the have and have nots Society. And just in case anyone is wondering if I deserve to be a have not?... No one deserves to be a have not it weakens our society and creates, well it creates what we've got today. I worked 60 to 80 hours a week enjoyed everything I did served my community and I had a plan that makes sense for the future with lots of safety net .generally I was a have that shared happily.
But there was no safety net when a drunk driver hit me head-on and killed my life killed my careers and permanently damage my body. Money is not an easy thing together when the body is limited even with all the careers and skills I have .iI scrimp to pay the power bill water bill and keep a car functioning so I can make it to where I am needed the most next. We need more men like John Parish I hope after reading this folks realize ; people do not necessarily choose to go off the grid or have fancy access to Internet and computers. Most of us do not desire to live in the dark Thank you John Parish for all that you do with such a grand heart and level head

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Author

Steve Trubilla is a freelance writer living in Youngsville, NC. He contributes to a wide range of publications and writes a column titled, "Paper Bullets".

Mr. Trubilla retried at the rank of Sergeant Major from the United States Marine Corps after 30 years of service.